HELP SM7B Mic Vocal Static

M

MicOne

New member
Hi there,

Recently I have been having a problem with my SM7B Microphone where the vocal input becomes staticy- Here is a recording of the issue . The Mic would start up normal then switch to the static several minutes into use. Unplugging then re-plugging the pre-amp seems to fix the issue for a short duration before it returns to a staticy state.

My Set Up is as follows:
Pre-Amp - M-Audio - M-Track II
FetHead- Shop - tritonaudio
SM7B - SM7B Vocal Microphone | Shure Americas

Any suggestion on possible cause or fix would be much appreciated.
Thank you so much for your time.
 

Attachments

  • SM7B Vocal Static.mp3
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Ugh... I never heard a mic do that. Sounds more like a preamp/interface or software issue but I am only guessing... Ive never heard a mic cable make that noise when bad either.

Do you have another mic to test with?
 
Unfortunatly I dont have another XLR mic to test with the pre-amp. Its odd because it only started happeneding after a move, I dont believe any damage was done to the equipment however.
 
You need to get one. Anything really so you can figure out the issue. I'll bet $100 it isn't your SM7b. If I am wrong you can use that to pay for the new mic. :)
 
Oh wow, no...That's not a mic/cable/phantom power issue. That's some kind of digital artefact.
When you say unplugging/replugging, you're talking about the USB cable, right?

You're 99% looking at a software thing here. I'd start by checking your driver version and OS compatibility. :)

Also, quick tip. If you can find a broken sm7b for less than $100...post it to Jimmy and make a profit. ;)
 
Hmm that would be interesting as Ive had the mic/amp for over a year and have only started to experiance this issue now. When it occures I usually unplug the power cable from the preanp not the USB, would that be a problem? Glad you think it isnt a hardware issue though
 
Actually maybe I was a bit hasty - I suppose it could be something with the interface itself.
Confident a mic/cable is never going to make that kind of noise on it's own, though.

Your preamp (Interface!) has a direct monitoring knob, right?
Next time the issue happens, don't kill it but instead switch to direct monitoring to see if you hear the problem that way too.
 
Yeah, next time the problem starts up, turn that.
Direct means you hear the mic signal having gone through the preamp only...No latency.
The other way means the signal goes through the preamp, into the computer, through whatever effects you have set up, then back out.
That round trip introduces a short delay sometimes, hence the need for that option.
 
- After the move and plugging things back in, did the interface get plugged into a different USB port and perhaps a USB3.0 port.
- Any USB devices added to the computer that weren't on it prior to the move?
- The interface doesn't have a lot of gain, but try the SM7b without the FetHead and phantom off.

The vocal sounds sort of like a ring modulation effect where there is another frequency riding on the vocal
 
Absolutely 100% nothing to do with the mic. Sounds like a sample rate mismatch where the driver has convinced itself something is wrong - maybe bit depth, bit rate or other small parameter, and instead of muting - is trying to work. Remove the driver, stick it back. Cubase does this on me every now and then with my Tascam rack interface. I turn it off, wit for the bing-bong, and turn it back on. The driver re-loads and it's fine again. Sometimes, dropping the driver in Cubase then putting it back works - but the on-off cycle seems to work better.
 
What's odd is that there is a delay to when the problem begins. Sound starts out OK, then after a short while acts up, but resets if the interface is disconnected and reconnected to the computer.
 
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